The Not-So-Behind-The-Scenes Staff

May 25, 20129:24 AM ET

NPR Staff

At every live recording of Ask Me Another, the producers can be spotted wrangling contestants, shepherding Very Important Puzzlers and frantically juggling revisions to scripts. They are involved in every step of the creative process, from choosing puzzles, coaching our on air guests, interviewing contestants and everything other little detail that needs to fall into place to get this show on the air each week. They are indispensable to making the radio magic each week.

Steve McFarland/NPR

Eric Nuzum – Executive Producer

Eric Nuzum is Ask Me Another's creator and the executive producer. When not doing that, he serves as NPR's Vice President of Programming. He worked at three public radio stations in Ohio before coming to NPR in 2004. He has published three books (none are about puzzles), contributed to a number of public radio programs (none of which involve puzzles), and won a number of awards (which is puzzling in itself). He loves working on Ask Me Another because he tries to surround himself with joy, fun, and laughter as often as possible. He is terrible at puzzles and games. Just ask his wife.

Jesse Baker arrives at Ask Me Another after first trying her hand at just about every other show at NPR – including All Things Considered and Weekend Edition — only to find she may have been best suited to corral puzzle gurus, keep score during tense trivia showdowns and convince Mystery Guests to donate prizes that you simply can't put a price tag on. Her favorite: A free closet consultation with Barney's Creative Ambassador-at-Large, Simon Doonan. Baker has also been a producer for Slate's Culture Gabfest and ESPN'S The Sporting Life with Jeremy Schaap. She will never compete in a crossword tournament but she is learning to speak puzzle.

Steve Petrucelli

Art Chung – Puzzle Editor

Art Chung has written for and produced more television game shows than one should safely watch in one's lifetime, including Who Wants to be a Millionaire?, Cash Cab, the World Series of Pop Culture, and Stump the Schwab. He also produced the 2011 documentary, The Pit, about commodity traders at the New York Board of Trade, and has written for such publications as the Village Voice, Time Out New York, and SmartMoney. He believes this is finally the year he wins his fantasy baseball league.

Steve McFarland/NPR

Josh Rogosin – Associate Producer

Josh is thrilled to be on the AMA production team. In 1999, he walked into NPR for a tour and wound up embarking on a remarkable career in public broadcasting. For five years he mixed and produced features for every NPR news magazine, launched NPR2 and trained producers and engineers. Josh helped shape Day to Day, News and Notes, The Bryant Park Project, Science Friday andWait Wait...Don't Tell Me! He covered Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, produced documentaries for Radio Expeditions, served as Technical Director for American Public Media's Marketplace Money in Los Angeles and returned to New York as Senior Broadcast Engineer for WNYC's Studio 360.

Steve McFarland/NPR

Eleanor Kagan – Assistant Producer

Eleanor Kagan has been part of Ask Me Another's production team since its inaugural season. During live tapings, you can find her rushing around, calming contestants' nerves, and buttering up the show's esteemed V.I.P.s. Previously she helped launch NPR Music Radio, and her contributions to NPR Music's First Listen series and end-of-year coverage led directly to her proud moment of being quoted on Beyoncé's official website. Prior to NPR, Eleanor created streaming radio for iHeartRadio and produced in-studio interviews and musical performances for WFUV in Bronx, NY. As a result of working on Ask Me Another, she's gotten excessively clever at Bananagrams, and her favorite culinary palindrome is "No, sir, away! A papaya war is on!"